


the warmth of a brother's soul

by Winterrs_child



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Gentron Week 2020, I love all of them, Shiro (Voltron) Needs a Break, Shiro (Voltron) Needs a Hug, also coran is missing in this, also they don't really cuddle in this even though that was the fuCKING PROMPT, because don't we all, broganes, but not really - it's just referenced, dammit, dude it's one in the morning i'm literally that ///no think/// tiktok meme, i just kinda...... forgot to write him in, i'm fine i'm fine i'm cool i'm fine, i'm so bad at tagging lmao, keith is a protective brother, love him tho, okay uh i hope you enjoy this, sorry - Freeform, they're all my children, uh they all have feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-04
Updated: 2020-08-04
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:01:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25705537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winterrs_child/pseuds/Winterrs_child
Summary: It hurts. It hurts so much worse than any physical pain could, because it goes straight to his heart and everything is twisting around itself and his mind is short-circuiting. He can’t breathe.“I’m sorry,” he whispers, because he is, and they need to hear it. “I’m so sorry. I—I put everyone in danger, the mission, the captives, and I didn’t think—I didn’t think twice about you guys and that was awful of me and I’m so sorry.”
Relationships: Allura & Hunk & Keith & Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt & Shiro
Kudos: 10
Collections: Gentronweek





	the warmth of a brother's soul

**Author's Note:**

> guys it is literally 1:04 AM and i am tiRED AS FUCK but uh hope you enjoy!!! don't worry - i'm gonna edit it a bit more when i can actually have coherent thoughts, but for now it's gonna be like this! love you!

It hurts. It hurts  _ so much worse _ than any physical pain could, because it goes straight to his heart and everything is twisting around itself and his mind is short-circuiting. He can’t  _ breathe. _

“I’m sorry,” he whispers, because he  _ is _ , and they need to hear it. “I’m so sorry. I—I put everyone in danger, the mission, the captives, and I didn’t think—I didn’t think twice about you guys and that was awful of me and I’m  _ so sorry _ .”

“But it wasn’t your—” Lance begins, though someone outside of Shiro’s view shushes him. It  _ was _ Shiro’s fault.

They all know it.

“I’m… I messed it up. But more than that, I could have  _ hurt you guys _ .” He  _ resents _ how his voice is shaking, but it’s not like he can do anything about it. He’s already ruined things enough—he might as well just try to get it all out there.

“You could have,” Keith says, with a barely perceptible nod. “But the fact stands that you  _ didn’t _ . We all made it out of there alive, right? So why does it matter? What good does it do to dwell on the past like this?”

There’s nothing but silence after that.

Shiro almost wishes that they would kick him off of the team entirely. He messed up once; who’s to say it won’t happen again? What evidence do they have that it was just a one time thing?

“I, for one, don't fully understand what happened.” Allura says from her perch on the counter. “One moment everything’s going fine, and the next, everyone’s near death. Could someone explain it to me?”

“It was my fault, Princess,” Shiro says, because what more is there to say than the truth? “I didn’t follow protocol because I thought I might be able to get to the captives faster. I…”

The look in Keith’s eyes is heated as he says, “Technically, you did. I mean, without your intervention, those people might not have made it. Guys, we’re making this out to be a bigger problem than it really is. So he broke protocol. Almost got us killed. But seriously, when are we not close to death? And he got the prisoners out safely, which is, like, the entire reason we were there.”

“Yeah!” Pidge agrees hotly, hands clenched tight enough that her knuckles are white. “I would have made the same call, if I’d realized what they were doing sooner! We all would! So why’s it any different when it’s Shiro?”

“What, exactly, happened? I would like all of the details.” Allura presses.

“We weren’t going to get there in time,” Hunk says quietly, staring at the ground. “We were there to rescue the captives and we got distracted by the Galra. It was all part of their plan, I bet—get Voltron’s attention away from the prisoners so you can kill them all? It’s… It’s something the Galra would do, for sure.”

“Shiro realized what they were doing a while before any of us did,” Keith cuts in, his voice filled with fire. “He broke out of formation so he could save the lives of hundreds of people—we all knew how dangerous Voltron was when we accepted the call to become Paladins, so I don’t understand why we’re making this such a big deal!”

“Your guys’ safety comes before anything else,” Shiro tells them, and suddenly all eyes are on him again. It doesn’t matter—they all need to listen to what he’s saying. “And I’m the one responsible for you. As the leader of Voltron, as the oldest Paladin, but also as your  _ friend _ . If you get injured in battle, it’s on me.  _ That’s _ why this is such a big deal—I can’t afford to be reckless. I can’t be someone you can rely on if I act on every idea I have.”

“I hope you realize that you are not the  _ only _ responsible one here, Shiro,” Allura says, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You do not have to carry this burden alone. We are all here for you, and—and we understand if you make mistakes. Because no one is perfect, and you’ve all been thrust into this world, so neither Coran nor I expected you to adjust as quickly as you did. No matter the fact that you’ve been through more than any of us, Shiro, and yet you’ve assumed the leader’s responsibilities almost seamlessly. That is more than I could have ever done, and I was raised to be a  _ queen _ . Your reaction saved hundreds of innocent citizens, and while yes, I agree that it should not be done again for fear of injuring the others, this time it  _ worked _ . _ ” _

The silence in the room is thick for several seconds before Shiro realizes that they’re waiting for his response, and he—he can’t  _ think _ through the tangled mix of emotions in his chest, so he just—he wraps his arms around Allura and she smiles, hugging him back just as tightly.

“Thank you,” he whispers into her hair. “You’re—you—oh god, you all are so great. I love you guys.”

“We love you, too!” Hunk shouts as he slams into Allura and Shiro, knocking them to the floor in a laughing tangle of arms and legs.

“We deserve a movie, after that,” Lance declares loudly, and he grabs Keith by the upper arm. “C’mon, guys, we can all hug in the rec room. I bet it’s a lot more comfortable than the kitchen at 3 AM with the lights off—we can get blankets and everything! It’ll be like a sleepover!”

Hunk’s eyes light up and he climbs to his feet, pulling Shiro and Allura with him. “This sounds so fun! Hey, I’ll make some snacks! You guys go get it all ready!”

\- 

Shiro wakes with a start—not because of nightmares, for once, but because light is shining against his eyelids and the weight on his chest makes it difficult to breathe. He would  _ never  _ move, though—this is the most comfortable he’s felt in  _ weeks _ .

He glances around at the paladins surrounding him—Keith and Pidge on his left, Lance and Hunk on his right, Allura sprawled across his entire torso—and suddenly he realizes that he’s  _ home _ . He’s home, and he’s with his family, and the Galra’s threats seem very far away and very insignificant, because these people—they can  _ kick ass _ . They can do  _ anything _ . The Galra don’t stand a chance.


End file.
